The Savior with the Frozen Heart
by Jane Howard
Summary: Jack, the charming, handsome Drama Club president, has no time for snobby girls or popular jocks. But when the new girl, Elsa, who is already dating the worst of the jocks, auditions for the school play, he knows he will have to work with her for the sake of the theatre. As he works with her, he learns that she isn't so bad and actually needs a friend like him.
1. Chapter 1: The Audition

"Next!" the director called after hearing the last girl to audition for the role of Buttercup. The school was putting on the play version of _The Princess Bride,_ and the drama club's president, Jack, was helping Mrs. Andalasia cast the production.

"That was the last girl on the list, Mrs. A," Jack muttered softly with his hand in his hair.

"What? That can't be! We have yet to find the _perfect_ Buttercup, Jack! She is the most _important_ role in this play!" Mrs. Andalasia screeched as she dramatically plopped her head down onto the table.

"Why don't we just cast Aurora," Jack offered, " I mean, she has the looks, the experience, and-"

"But she just isn't _right_! Buttercup is supposed to be snobby but _vulnerable_… elegant yet naive… INDIGNANT but sweet," she exclaimed. "Plus, with Aurora being your ex-girlfriend and all, that on-stage chemistry you once shared is -"

"Mrs. A, please!" Jack chuckled, "Aurora and I are still great friends, and we can pull it off. Don't worry about it."

"Errmm.." she groaned, "I don't knoooow. I still don't think she has _it._ I mean, don't get me wrong! Aurora is a _fabulous _actress, but she's fabulous when she's put in the right role. She can't portray the "innocent little girl at heart" kind of role. She's too stiff and uptight! We need a girl who-"

Suddenly there was a knock at the end of the stage, and on to it walked Elsa Snow.

"Hi… uhh… I'm sorry I'm late. Is there still time to audition?"

Her platinum blonde hair was gracefully done in a side-braid while her bangs beautifully framed her pristine, pale face. Her slim, long arms were covered in a white, long-sleeved shirt, and her legs in black jeans. She looked plain but had an exquisite beauty about her. Mrs. Andalasia stared at the girl and couldn't help but feel like she was _the one._

"Of course not! Oh, goodness, of course not! Please, introduce yourself and give us your best shot!" Mrs. Andalasia blurted excitedly. "Fingers crossed for this one!" she whispered to Jack, who had his head on his hand and watched, uninterested.

"Okay… thank you," Elsa said before clearing her throat. "My name is Elsa Snow, and I will be auditioning for the role of Princess Buttercup. The monologue I will be using is from _Under Siege_, and I will be portraying Mary."** [Author's note: I do not own this monologue. It is an actual piece written by G. L. Horton.]**

"Ooh, I don't think I know this one! Go on dear," Mrs. Andalasia cooed, to which Elsa nodded and smiled.

Sitting, Elsa clasped her hands together and made a pained look with her face. "It's killing. I know that," she began, "But I have to. There's nowhere for us to go." Looking up, she transformed her pained face to an angry one and said, " So how would we live? Go on welfare?" Then she muttered, "That's what my girlfriend says. But she doesn't know any better." Her muttering transformed slowly and paced into a yell, "She's seventeen and she lives in a project with her baby, her mother, and her sister. They stay in their creepy little place all the time, afraid to go out! And Doreen says… _she says_ if I want to keep it - I can live with her!" Elsa stood, and, placing her arms gracefully and timidly over each other, she said, sadly, "I mean, I appreciate that, she's a real friend. But I've always said, 'Thank God my family's not like that. We've got morals; we've got pride,'" And then, angrily, "I've thought this over very carefully, and I've come to the right decision. You… can't… _help me,_" tearing up, the girl then looked toward the audience, "I'm sorry. I don't mean it's your fault… nobody can help me. Because… it's my baby." Returning to her original composure, she then said, "Thank you," and curtsied.

Standing excitedly, Mrs. Andalasia clapped her hands uncontrollably, "Magnificent! Oh simply _magnificent_!"

Jack, with little expression in his face, clapped his hands together lightly and then said, "I have to ask. Why did you choose that monologue for Princess Buttercup?"

"Oh… uh, right…" Elsa managed, shocked she'd have to answer questions like this. The real reason was because her best friend, Rapunzel, had done theatre for quite some time, and this was the piece she used whenever she'd go to compete. But Elsa didn't want to admit she only learned one monologue. "I guess I chose this piece because it's so raw."

"Oh! Beautiful, talented, and uses her brain!" Mrs. Andalasia said, unable to help herself, "Go on, dear, tell us more,"

"Well, the girl in the monologue is afraid, and she tries to cover it up with anger. She pretends to be angry with her friend, Doreen and her family for looking down on them, but, deep inside, she just wants someone she respects to tell her that it's okay and to tell her what to do. And, I read the book version of _The Princess Bride,_ and I think that Buttercup is a lot like this girl," Elsa started.

"How so?" Jack asked, unconvinced.

"Well, Buttercup is a very indignant girl, but she's also vulnerable, in a way, I think because she's growing up and isn't sure she's doing it right. And when Westley, the only person she looks up to, leaves her, she just kind of goes mad and becomes completely reckless - because of that lack of guidance," Elsa responded.

"Darling, you've got it," Mrs. Andalasia whispered dramatically, "You have it, you have it, you have it! That is _exactly _how I would describe Buttercup! You could not be more-"

"Thank you. We'll let everyone know who is called back by Friday," Jack interrupted.

"Okay, thanks," Elsa smiled timidly. She then walked off the stage.

"What is _wrong with you?_" Mrs. Andalasia stammered. "How can you not see her perfection?!"

"I don't know, Mrs. A. She was good, don't get me wrong, but I don't know how I feel about this one. She's one of those popular girls. She's dating Gaston, our team's football hero and complete numbskull. What happens if the day of the play conflicts with a football game or something? I just don't see her committing or caring about anything outside of her little bubble," Jack said, staring at the spot on the stage where she once stood. Looking back at his teacher he then said, "In fact, I don't even know why she auditioned in the first place. She probably lost a bet or something. Girls like her don't take things like theatre seriously."

Having her mood thoroughly pummelled, Mrs. Andalasia puffed, "Fine. Aurora will be her understudy."

"What?!" Jack exclaimed.

"Elsa was simply the best. So she will be cast as Princess Buttercup, and, if she fails to do the role, Aurora will take her place."

Knowing he could not win this fight, Jack resignatingly said, "Fine."

"It's settled then!" the teacher exclaimed, returning to her usual happy self, "You will play our hero, Westley; Aladdin will be the exciting Inigo Montoya; Quasimodo will be Fezzik the Giant; Peter will be the cunning Vizzini; and Elsa Snow shall be our Princess Bride!"

**Jack could not think of any girl he would want to be his on-stage partner less than Elsa Snow. She was a total snob - he was sure of it. He'd never had an actual conversation with her before, but he knew her group, and he knew that this production would be all work and no fun because of her. **


	2. Chapter 2: The Callback

**[Hey guys! I forgot to add a little note to my last entry, but this is my first ever fanfiction! I'm new to this, so I don't really know how a lot of things work - for example, that last sentence in the last entry was bolded for some reason? Don't really know how to fix that, haha. Thank you so much for reading! I've never had the guts to show people my work before.**

**Also, I PROMISE this is a Jelsa! Jack is just very hesitant to trust Elsa in the beginning, but he'll warm up; just be patient :) **

**I don't own any of these characters or The Princess Bride]**

"So Jack, has the play been casted yet?" Aurora asked, addressing the elephant in the room as the theatre kids sat together eating their lunch.

Jack lost a lot of sleep last night just trying to imagine how irritating it would be to go about the stage kiss with Elsa. He knew she'd probably embarrass him during rehearsals with her inexperience with on-stage chemistry and laugh during the romantic scenes - or worse - refuse to kiss him and make him look like a fool in front of everyone.

"Jack," Aurora pushed, "I know you're in there."

"Huh?" Jack snapped back into reality. "I'm sorry, can you repeat what you were saying?"

"If you don't want to tell us, you don't have to," Aurora said, annoyed.

"Oh, the play… casting…" Jack began, "You guys know nothing is certain until callbacks." Jack was staring at the table in the center of the cafeteria. The jock table - or tables, as three or four tables had to be pushed together so that the whole group could fit. In the center sat Flynn with Rapunzel in his lap and Gaston with his arm around Elsa.

"How many girls auditioned for Buttercup?" Aurora asked, making no attempt to hide her anxiety for the role.

"Quite a few. More girls auditioned for that role than any other."

"Well it _is_ like the only female role. Why would Andalasia pick a play that's so uneven like that?" Aurora complained.

"Hang on," Jack said, standing, "I'll be right back." Walking over to the tables in the center of the room, Jack approached the jock table.

"Can we help you?" Gaston asked, noticing Jack.

"I want to talk to your girlfriend," Jack said.

"Oh yeah? What business do you have -"

"It's okay," Elsa interrupted. "Hi Jack, take a seat."

"Actually, I was hoping to talk in private," Jack asserted.

"Oh," Elsa shyly replied. As she stood, Gaston glared at the white-haired outsider.

When they were a safe distance away from the others Jack made no attempt to sound friendly.

"What are you doing?" He immediately asked.

"Ummm, what do you -"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Auditioning yesterday. You can't seriously want to be in the play. You don't even know anyone in theatre."

"Excuse me?" Elsa said, unable to believe he questioning her like this. "How would you know whether or not I'm serious about the play?"

"Come on, Elsa," Jack began. "You didn't even sign up for the audition, and you showed up right as it was ending. Did someone put you up to it? Is this some kind of practical joke?"

Elsa just stared at Jack. "What is your _problem_?" she finally managed.

"Nevermind," Jack said as he threw his hands in the air, walking away. See you at the callback.

* * *

><p>"Alright, and our last pairing, Buttercup and Westley!" Mrs. Andalasia shouted. "Who would like to go first? Let's see, for Westley we have Jack and Eric, and for Buttercup we have Aurora and Elsa."<p>

Elsa killed her callbacks with the other groups. She simply had a natural talent for playing a character like Buttercup. She was believable, and Jack was afraid he was starting to agree with Mrs. Andalasia.

"I'll go first!" Aurora volunteered.

"Fantastic! Jack, would you like to accompany?" Mrs. Andalasia asked.

"Yeah, no problem," Jack responded, walking onto the stage.

"Alright, scripts in hands please! Let's do the scene along the hilltop, page 42," Mrs. Andalasia commanded.

Jack and Aurora skimmed over the script to find that it was a scene both of them had already memorized.

"You ready?" Jack asked.

Aurora nodded and the two of them went through the scene as if they had already rehearsed and mastered it. Neither of them missing a beat.

"Excellent job! Now, can I have Elsa in for Buttercup, and, Jack, why don't you do this scene again and then we'll run them both over with Phillip,"

Jack stared at Elsa while she walked up onto the stage, not even glancing back at him.

"Ready?" he asked. Elsa nodded and took his hand.

They ran across the stage as if they were running from someone and stopped to argue every once in a while, as the scene commanded. As they reached the part where Buttercup becomes angry with Westley, Elsa very convincingly yelled at Jack with pain in her voice.

"You mocked me once, never do it again!" she yelled, " I _died _that day!" There was so much pain in her face and in her voice that Jack was thrown off for a second. Picking up his script, he found that he had no more lines to respond to her with. Following the blocking, he walked to the end of the stage and pretended to see something in the distance.

Walking over to him, Elsa muttered with disgust, "You can die too for all I care," before pushing him off the stage.

"Oh bravo! Bravo!" Mrs. Andalasia cheered. "That was _perfect_! Elsa, you were so believable! I could _feel _the rage with your performance! Ugh, and the _pain_! You are a _natural_!"

"Thank you," Elsa blushed. Noticing Jack as he walked back to the stage, she added, "I hope you aren't hurt. You seemed a little thrown off toward the end, I didn't mean to surprise you."

"Don't worry about it," Jack walked on, not even looking at her.

**[Again, thank you guys SO MUCH for reading! I'm really excited about this, and I'll do my best to update often!]**


	3. Chapter 3: Getting the Part

**[Hey everyone! Thanks for getting this far! :) By the way, I made a mistake on the last entry. I said that the other guy auditioning for Westley was Eric, and then I said it was Philip. It was supposed to be Philip, but I changed it to Eric without changing both parts, haha. Whoops. Hope that didn't confuse anyone.]**

"Hey Elsa! Congratulations on making Princess Buttercup!" Quasimodo gleefully said to Elsa, who was walking over to the theatre to see the cast list.

"I got the part?" Elsa repeated, surprised and excited.

"Of course you did! Man, you were great!" Aladdin assured her.

"Wow… thank you both so much! Did you guys get Fezzik and Inigo?" Elsa asked, excited.

"Sure did!" Quasimodo exclaimed. "And Jack is Westley, in case you were wondering who you had to kiss."

"Of course Jack got Westley. He's our best actor by far!" Aladdin added.

"Wait… there's a kissing scene?" Elsa said as her eyes widened.

"Of _course_ there's a kissing scene," Aurora scoffed as she walked into the hallway. "It's _The Princess Bride._ Did you not see the movie or something?"

"I skimmed the book," Elsa admitted. "I don't… I don't know if I can…"

"God, we are dealing with amateurs," Aurora shook her head and sashayed away.

"I… uh…" Elsa stammered, "I need to go." As she turned around, she bumped into Jack.

"Sorry, Princess," Jack joked. "Didn't mean to get in your way."

"Excuse me," Elsa said, rushing off.

"Is she okay?" Jack asked.

"She seems really nervous about the kissing scene. She says she can't do it." Quasimodo answered.

Jack threw his head back, frustrated. "I knew it," he groaned. "You can't expect girls like her not to mess things up."

"Hey, take it easy on her, man," Aladdin began, "This is her first ever play, and she has a really stressful role. Maybe you should help her ease into everything. You are the one who always says that everyone is welcome in the theatre. So why are you, except for Aurora, the one with the hardest time accepting her?"

"You're right," Jack admitted. "I'll catch you guys in a bit."

* * *

><p>Walking into the quad area of the school, Elsa assumed her position by Gaston's side.<p>

"Hey, how's my SugarPlum Princess," Gaston greeted, kissing Elsa's pale cheek.

"It's Princess Buttercup," Elsa laughed, "and she's great. I got the part!"

"I knew you would! So when's opening night? I wanna buy ten tickets," Gaston said, lifting Elsa up off the ground.

"It won't be for months," Elsa chuckled, "put me down! You know I'm ticklish!"

Gaston let Elsa's feet feel the floor again as Rapunzel and Flynn walked into the circle.

"Hey Els, did ya get the part?" Rapunzel asked.

"Of course she did!" Gaston answered for her.

"Oh, that's just so exciting!" Rapunzel squealed as she hugged Elsa. "Westley and Buttercup are probably my _favorite_ fictional couple! Who is your Westley?"

"Oh… it's uh, do you remember that guy? The one who came over to our table last week. With the white hair?"

"Oh, the rude one?" Rapunzel frowned. "I can't believe you'll have to kiss _him_."

"Excuse me," Gaston let out a fake, sarcastic laugh, "What? You auditioned to play someone who has to kiss someone else on stage? I know how these things work, Elsa, Rapunzel's told us all a thousand times about how the leads date each other -"

"I didn't know when I auditioned!" Elsa blurted, "And this guy can't stand me anyway, so he'll probably find a way for us to get out of it! I swear, if I'd have known, I would have auditioned for -"

"Why did you have to audition at all?" Gaston gritted his teeth.

"Oh stop, Gaston, you know it was all my fault. I wanted her to see how fun acting can be," Rapunzel answered.

"Gaston, I promise you, I didn't intend -"

"Whatever," Gaston grunted as he trudged away.

"Wait, baby, I'm -" Elsa started before she bumped into Jack, chasing after her boyfriend.

"Hey, Elsa, can we talk again?" Jack asked.

"Not now," Elsa shooed, walking quickly past.

"Listen, I know I came off as a bit of a jerk," Jack insisted anyway, following her as she walked. "But I think we just got off on the wrong foot. And, as you know, we're the leads, and so we should do our best to get along. It causes a lot of bad energy throughout the whole play when two people who need to work together can't -"

"I probably won't be able to do the play," Elsa cut him off.

"You what?" Jack stopped.

Turning to him, Elsa gave him a brief explanation. "Look, I didn't know there was going to be an on-stage kiss, and I have a boyfriend."

"That's the whole point of acting. We don't really need to fall in love and date. Plenty of people kiss on stage and have perfectly healthy relationships outside of the theatre."

"But don't the leads usually end up together?" Elsa asked, still after Gaston.

"It happens occasionally, but it isn't a rule that that'll happen. Besides, no offense, but I don't think we're each others' types," Jack tried.

"Well he's really uncomfortable with it, and he's going to throw a fit if I go through with it," Elsa returned.

"Elsa, Elsa, stop," Jack said, grabbing her arm. "Look at me," cupping her face into his hands, Jack placed his thumbs over Elsa's lips and kissed the nails of his thumbs. "It's called a stage kiss. If the actors are uncomfortable, like you seem to be, we always have this kind of thing."

Elsa stumbled back into the lockers before regaining her balance. "Oh," she managed, "uhm, okay. That was interesting," Looking up at Jack she said, "So we can do one like that, where we aren't really kissing?"

"Yeah," Jack laughed. "Now relax. I'll see you at rehearsal."

* * *

><p>"Gaston, Gaston!" Elsa shouted excitedly as she made her way down to their lunch table. "I have something to show you!"<p>

Gaston briefly looked up at Elsa and then back at his food, ignoring her.

"Hey, come here," she said, cupping his face into her hands just as Jack had done with her. Kissing her thumbs, Elsa proudly smiled at her boyfriend while taking her seat. "Jack showed me that. It's called a stage kiss. I won't have to kiss anybody after all! So you have nothing to worry about!"

Gaston looked at Elsa and then finally broke into a smile. "You figured that out just to keep me happy?" He beamed.

"Of course," Elsa assured.

"I'm sorry, babe, I just get so jealous sometimes," Gaston apologized.

"There is absolutely nothing for you to worry about," Elsa said proudly.


	4. Chapter 4: The Cast-Warming Party

"Alright, thank you to everyone! That was a great rehearsal!" Mrs. Andalasia was saying as she wrapped up the third rehearsal of the week. "I expect to see all of your fresh faces and shining personalities bright and early tomorrow! Saturday rehearsal starts at ten o'clock!"

"Hey, Elsa," Jack said, catching up to Elsa, who was stuffing her script into her bag. "Great work today."

"Thanks," Elsa said, cautiously. Jack had been hot and cold all week, ignoring her in the theatre and then saying hi to her in the hallway or avoiding her during rehearsal and then striking up conversation backstage. "You too," she reciprocated. Elsa knew what was going on. Jack still wanted nothing to do with her but was trying to be nice for the sake of the play.

"So listen, after the first friday of every production, we always have this 'cast-warming' party at my house, and I think you should come," Jack said in a 'matter-of-fact' sort of tone.

"Thanks, but -"

"I know you don't think you're welcome and that I'm only inviting you because I feel like I have to," Jack began, "but it isn't true. I really want you to be there. I think that everyone should get to know you so that we can all become more comfortable with each other."

"Jack, that's very sweet of you, but I need to watch my younger sister tonight. She's a freshman, and-"

"Bring her," Jack suggested. Elsa could tell by the unwavering determination in his eyes that he wouldn't take no for an answer. "Here's my address," He said, taking out a pen and writing on her script, "Do you need someone to come and pick you guys up, or can you get your own ride?"

"Uhh, we'll try to figure it out," Elsa fretted.

"Alright, see you tonight, at 8," he smiled before walking away.

* * *

><p>Jack sighed as he looked at the clock. It was eight forty-five, and Elsa had yet to show up.<p>

"So who brought the movie?" Aladdin asked, taking a seat on the couch.

"Jack was supposed to get it this time," Aurora poked while taking her seat next to Aladdin.

"Oh man, how did I forget? Hang on, there's a video store right down the street," Jack explained, "I'll be right back."

"Want me to go with you?" Aurora offered.

"No, don't worry about it," Jack opened the door and found Elsa sitting on the chair set out in front of the house. "You know, people usually knock or ring a doorbell or something when they want to let the house know they're out here." Jack smiled.

"I was going to ring the doorbell, I just -"

"Don't worry about it. Where's your sister?"

"I had her spend the night at her friend's. What are you doing?" Elsa asked, noticing he had a jacket on and was obviously heading out.

"It's a tradition for us to watch the movie version of the play we're doing, and I forgot to get the movie," Jack laughed. "Wanna come with me to go and grab it?"

"Sure," Elsa answered.

Walking down the driveway, Jack unlocked his truck and opened the passenger door for Elsa. "Excuse the mess, I have a little brother and sister I drag around everywhere," Jack apologized.

"Oh don't even worry about it. My sister can be a handful too," Elsa answered awkwardly.

"She's a freshman, right? What's her name?" Jack asked. The sincerity in his tone was bothering Elsa. She couldn't tell whether he was forcing himself to be nice to her or if he was truly curious.

"Her name's Anna. What are your brother and sister's names?" Elsa returned.

"My brother's name is Jamie; he's seven. And my sister's name is Sophie, and she's three," Jack said with a proud smile on his face.

"Do they also have snowy-white hair?" Elsa giggled, looking up at his locks.

"No, Sophie and Jamie have a different father than I do," Jack remarked, starting up the engine. "My father died a long time ago."

"Oh… I'm sorry," Elsa said, feeling terrible. "Both of my parents died in a car accident last year."

Jack looked at Elsa. "I am so -"

"It's okay," Elsa interrupted, unsure of her ability to take sympathy from him. "So how close is the video store?"

After staring at Elsa and then understanding that she really wanted the subject changed, Jack answered, "It's right here, actually," pulling into the parking lot.

* * *

><p>"Okay, it's time to <em>really<em> find out about everyone in here!" Aurora beamed, "Let's play 'Never Have I Ever,'"

The group had just finished watching the movie, and Elsa had been sitting by herself, in the single-seater couch the entire night.

"Wait, with clothes or with fingers?" Aladdin asked.

"Fingers!" Aurora snapped. "Okay, in case anybody doesn't know, the way of the game goes like this: You hold ten fingers up, and, for everything announced that you've done, you put a finger down. And we go until we find the most _experienced _person in the room, and that person has to choose what we do next."

"It's a really juvenile way to play a mature," Aladdin complained.

"Oh shut up," Aurora hissed. "Okay, everyone in a circle! Aaaand, Jack! You go first."

"Fine," Jack sighed. "Never have I ever… thrown up in the dressing room," he laughed.

"I hate you," Aladdin glared as he put a finger down. "I had some really bad sushi for lunch that day."

Quasimodo was next. "Never have I ever…uh… had sex."

Almost the entire group groaned as they put fingers down.

Aladdin was next. "Alrighty Jack," he started, pretending to glare, "Never have I ever been in _love_."

Jack laughed, putting a finger down and noticed that just about everyone who had put one down in the previous round had to take another, but Elsa didn't. _I really hope she isn't one of those girls,_ Jack thought. _And just when I was starting to think she was okay. _

"Elsa, you're up!" Quasimodo smiled at her.

"Alright," Elsa thought aloud, "Never have I ever… been in a play," she grinned. The group was split between laughs and groans.


	5. Chapter 5: The Fitting

"Everyone, this is Raven Baxter, and she will be designing our costumes!" Mrs. Andalasia beamed. "During rehearsal, you will one by one go and get your measurements done. Oh, and Elsa, you will stay until the end of rehearsal to try on _this_," she said, pulling a dress off of the rack behind Raven. It was a beautiful, full length wedding dress. "We can't afford to have Raven design a wedding dress for you, but she has this to lend to us! We'll make alterations if necessary. Now, to the stage!"

After rehearsal was over, almost the entire cast left, except Elsa, who went to try on the dress as commanded, and Jack, who was helping Mrs. Andalasia design posters to put up around the school.

"I really like helvetica," Jack was saying as they were deciding on a font.

"Ugh, Jack, you are such a boy," Mrs. Andalasia sighed, "helvetica is _boring_, we need something elegant and charming, something -"

"Okay okay, helvetica in italics," Jack laughed. He suddenly stopped laughing and stared as Elsa walked out of the dressing room. Her hair was put up in a messy bun so that Raven could do up the buttons, but it pulled off a graceful, sophisticated look. Her gorgeous figure was perfectly hugged by every inch of the bodice, and the long, beautiful skirt flowed as she walked toward them.

"I think it fits," Elsa said shyly.

"It fits _perfectly_, there won't need to be _any _alterations," Raven proclaimed proudly.

"Wow, this is really amazing," Mrs. Andalasia said in awe. "Elsa spin for us," she smiled.

Elsa timidly kept her arms tucked under her chest and spun, allowing the skirt to show itself off. Jack couldn't say anything; all he could do was stare.

"I knew she was perfect," Mrs. Andalasia reminded Jack. Snapping out of his hypnotized state, Jack wondered why he didn't see before how beautiful the girl really was. Looking her up and down, he noticed that she had always worn long sleeves, which was odd because it was rather warm outside. Looking at her arms, he saw that she wouldn't let them free from hugging her own torso and wondered if she really was that shy.

"Oh gosh, I gotta run," Raven said, looking at her watch. Giselle **[if you guys didn't notice/figure it out, haha, Mrs. Andalasia is Giselle from Enchanted] **would you mind if I left my stuff here for the weekend? I'm late for a very important client."

"Not a problem!" Mrs. Andalasia waved her arm. As Raven grabbed her purse and ran off, Mrs. Andalasia went back into her office.

"You look… really really great… in that," Jack managed, "I mean. Wow."

"Thank you," Elsa blushed. "Umm, I'm going to go and take this off," she said before walking into the dressing room.

Shortly after, she walked back into the room, frustrated with her inability to pull the zipper from her gown. "Mrs. A, can you help me?" she asked.

"Oh sure thing, sweety," Mrs. Andalasia started before hearing the phone in her office ring. "Actually, I really need to take this call, Jack, would you mind?"

"Yeah, I got it," he said to her, not realizing what was happening.

Walking back into the dressing room, Elsa nervously fiddled with the lace on the dress. "I think it's stuck," she explained.

"Oh," he said nervously. Jack had done this a hundred times with all of his female club-mates in the countless dress rehearsals, fittings, performances, and other miscellaneous circumstances, but he found himself nervous. "So do I just, ummm," he said, getting his fingers around the the piece on her back.

"Yeah… just," Elsa guided as she leaned forward.

"Uh oh," Jack stammered, noticing what the zipper was stuck on. "It looks like some of the lace got caught in the zipper. We're gonna have to cut it… or -"

"We can't _cut it_!" Elsa interjected. "Just try to -"

"I'm gonna go and grab some scissors," Jack said turning to leave.

"Don't you dare!" Elsa shouted, grabbing his arm.

"Don't worry, it's just a piece…" Jack started before glimpsing Elsa's arm. Noticing that Jack was staring, Elsa let go of his arm and turned away. "Let's just wait for Mrs. Andalasia to get off the phone before we do anything," Elsa said, trying to see if he didn't notice.

"Elsa," Jack whispered, "let me see your arm." There were bruises on the inner parts of her forearm. He had seen bruises like that before.

"Just go," Elsa tried. "I'll figure it out myself."

Stepping forward, Jack reached for Elsa's shoulder. "Elsa, look at me. Is Gaston hurting you?"

Turning around, Elsa looked up at Jack. Before she could say anything, Mrs. Andalasia knocked on the door.

"Are you two alright in there? I've finished with the phone call if you still need help, Elsa," she called from the door.

Clearing her throat, Elsa answered, "Actually, could you come in here Mrs. A? I think the zipper is stuck on a piece of the lace."


	6. Chapter 6: The Apartment

"Elsa, wait up," Jack called from his truck as she walked out of the building.

Mrs. Andalasia fixed the zipper, and Elsa changed back into her regular clothes thinking that Jack had already left.

"Do you need a ride home?" he offered, unsure of what else to say.

"Thanks, but I'm fine walking," Elsa answered, walking away from him.

"Elsa, I promise I won't ask about it if you let me take you home. Come on; where do you live?" Jack persisted.

Knowing that it'd be easier to take a ride from Jack than to take the forty-five minute walk again, Elsa gave in. "I live in the Arendelle Apartment complex," she told him, getting into the car.

As Jack promised, he didn't ask about the bruises. Instead, he made brief conversation and played music through the radio. Pulling up to Elsa's apartment, he noticed Elsa suddenly became very uptight. Looking around, he saw why.

Exiting his own truck, Gaston walked toward Elsa and Jack. "Where have you been all weekend, Els? I dropped by this morning; Anna said rehearsal was supposed to end two hours ago. I even went to go and pick you up, but you and this guy were the only ones who didn't leave the building." He was angry.

Unbuckling her seatbelt, Elsa looked at Jack, "You should really go. Thank you for the ride; I really appreciate it," she said quickly, exiting the vehicle with a calmness that only assured Jack that she'd been through this before.

"I had to stay late to try on a dress the designer brought in for me," she explained.

"Trying on dresses doesn't take _that long_," Gaston accused. "And so why was this guy staying back with you, huh? He had to try on a dress too?"

"He does more than just act on stage; he was staying back to help Mrs. Andalasia. Will you calm down? Let's just go inside and -"

"No!" Gaston shouted. "I don't believe you Els! All I've ever been was good to you, and you go off and sneak around behind my back with _this _guy, and you know what? I'm tired of it! This thing we've got going on? It's over - done! I want you and your sister out by tomorrow!"

"Gaston, wait!" Elsa begged, "I'm sorry!"

"I mean it," he yelled. As he walked away, Elsa fell on the floor in tears.

"Elsa," Jack called as he got out of his truck and bent over next to her. "Elsa, what is going on?"

"Just go away, Jack," Elsa sniffled.

"Elsa, just let me help you," Jack insisted.

"You _can't _help me! Okay?" she shouted, staring at him with tears filling her eyes. "Just _leave_!" she screamed again.

After staring at her and playing in his head every possible thing that he could say to her and imagining every way she'd shoot him down, he realized that there was no way to talk to Elsa right now and that she needed her space.

"Okay," he finally said, "I'll see you Monday."

Watching him get back into his car, Elsa whispered through her sobs, "I'm sorry. It's not your fault," wishing she could really say it to him without having him pester her and stick around.

Getting up off the ground, Elsa walked to her front door and shuffled through her bag for her keys. Before she could get her hands on them, Anna opened the door.

"Elsa?" she whispered. "I heard the whole thing. Did… did he mean it?"

"I don't know," Elsa sniffled. "I'm sorry, Anna, I guess we'll have to move back with Aunt Cruella. If Gaston -"

"No!" Anna shouted. "I am not going back with her! Especially after we left, and I told her that we don't need her? She'll be _ten times _worse than she was! Can't you make up with Gaston? You guys were so good together, and things are so much easier when it's just the two of us," she pleaded.

"Anna… I shouldn't," Elsa began, still shaking from the tears. "Gaston isn't who he used to be -"

"_Elsa_," Anna begged, "I _cannot _go back." Elsa saw the fear in her eyes and understood that she needed to decide between herself and her sister.

"Okay," Elsa gave in. "I'll talk to him.

* * *

><p>Elsa walked over to Gaston's house and knocked on the door.<p>

"Gaston, it's me, Elsa," she shouted.

"What do you want?" he yelled through the door.

"I want to talk to you," she replied. After understanding that his silence meant that he wasn't interested, she added, "I'll quit the play."

Gaston opened the door.

"So you _were_ messing around with -"

"_No_, I joined the play for the exact reason I said I did. I thought it would be a fun experience and a good way to make new friends," she corrected.

"But why do you _need _new friends, Els? You've got me, Rapunzel, Flynn, the _entire_ varsity football team, and -"

"Those are _your_ friends, Gaston. I mean, yes, Rapunzel and I did become very close, and I'm very glad I got to know her, but except for her, I feel like an outsider, or _the girlfriend_, and I wanted to earn my own friends and not have them given to me," Elsa explained. "But I'll quit if it hurts our relationship; you mean too much to me," she lied.

"Oh Elsa, come here," Gaston motioned for her to hug him. "If you felt like an outsider you should have talked to me. Let's go out tonight. You, me, the team -"

"But Anna," Elsa reminded him.

"Does she really need to be watched every night?" Gaston complained.

Wishing that Gaston would offer to invite Anna like Jack had done, Elsa sighed, "She's only fourteen. She's afraid to be alone and -"

"I get it," Gaston interrupted. "Do you wanna come in for now though?"

"Sure," Elsa replied, entering his home.


	7. Chapter 7: Avoiding Jack

"But the dress," Mrs. Andalasia tried for the last time, "it fits you so perfectly! You _have _to know that it was a sign that you were _meant_ to do the role!"

"I'm so sorry, Mrs. Andalasia," Elsa apologized, "I truly am. But I simply have too much homework, and I made a promise to myself that if rehearsals took up too much time that I would choose my education over the theatre. I hope you understand."

"Very well," Mrs. Andalasia gave in. "We'll all be sad to see you go."

As Elsa walked out, she noticed that Jack was waiting outside of the director's office.

"You're leaving?" he asked, disappointed.

"Yeah," was all Elsa could say.

"Elsa, don't think that just because we aren't on stage together that I'm going to forget about everything. I won't stop trying to figure out what's going on with you, and I won't stop trying to help you. So, if you'd like, you can just tell me everything right now."

"_Nothing_ is going on with me, Jack! I bruise easily is all," Elsa tried.

"Bull_shit_," Jack snapped. "I've seen bruises like that before. Remember when I mentioned that Jamie and Sophie have a different father than I do? That guy isn't in our lives anymore because he used to _hit_ my mom. The bruises you have on your arm are from when he grabs you and squeezes until he gets his way," he said, taking her arm and pulling her sleeve up, wrapping his hand around her arm and showing that each of his fingers matched perfectly with the fading spots. "Don't try to lie to me, Elsa."

As Elsa struggled to come up with something to say to get Jack of her back, the bell rang, giving her an easy getaway with no explanation.

* * *

><p>Elsa did her best to get everything back to normal. All week she did her best to make Gaston happy, spent all her time after school watching the football players practice as she did her homework in the bleachers with Rapunzel, and, most of all, avoided Jack.<p>

Putting her books into her locker, Elsa looked forward to the promise of the weekend - where she wouldn't have to constantly evade Jack.

"Hey Elsa, why did you quit the play?" It was Peter, the sophomore who played Vizzini.

"Oh, hi Peter," Elsa avoided his question. "How is the play going?"

"I think the only person having an alright time getting along without you in the play is Aurora, and that's only because she's Buttercup now; I think she was actually starting to like you. We all miss you, Elsa, why did you leave?" Peter persisted.

"It's really complicated, Peter, and I'm sorry, but I just couldn't do it anymore," Elsa said before walking away.

Finding her group, Elsa went with them to a party. Being around drunken teenagers, loud music, and a lack of sincerity upon every person's presence, Elsa never felt more like an actress.

Arriving at home, she thanked Gaston for taking her back and began to remove her seatbelt and open the door.

"Where do you think you're going, baby?" Gaston smiled, pulling her back into the car, onto his side of the seat.

"Gaston, it's late," Elsa whined. "I'll see you tomorrow." She tried to get away from him, but he had his arms wrapped quite tightly around her.

"Gaston," she tried again. "Anna's waiting for me."

"Actually," Gaston corrected, "Your sister is on a date right now with the star of the JV team, Kristoff. I set them up; you're welcome," he bragged, kissing Elsa. "So we've got the night to ourselves."

"Gaston," Elsa repeated into his mouth as he wouldn't remove his from hers, "I'm really tired… and I think we should -"

"Move to the bedroom?" Gaston finished, "I was thinking the exact same thing." He got out of the truck and jogged around to her side, trying to get Elsa to get out of the vehicle and come with him to her front door.

"You're drunk," Elsa realized, "You drove me home while you were _drunk!_" she yelled.

"Huh, would you look at that," Gaston pretended to notice, "I guess there's no driving home for me then." As he reached for her again, Elsa kicked him in the chest and screamed for help.

Immediately recovering, Gaston jumped into his truck and laid his body on top of Elsa's holding his hand to her mouth, muffling her screams. "Listen up, _bitch_," he growled, "You're not staying in my father's apartment complex rent-free for nothing." Tearing Elsa's sweater, he grunted, "It's been way too long. I don't believe we've done this since you got into that stupid play."

Horrified, Elsa bit Gaston's hand and jumped out of the other side of the truck as he jumped out of her side cursing.

Running as quickly as she could, Elsa barely made it to her front door before Gaston rammed his body into hers, crushing her against the wall. Turning her around to face him and then choking her neck, he smirked, "You think it's that easy to get away from me?"

Running his hands over her body and smearing his drunk lips all along her neck, Gaston didn't even try to move to the inside of the apartment. Elsa screamed a final time before kicking him and running toward the street.

Certain she'd find Gaston right behind her, Elsa was amazed to see Jack with his arm around Gaston's neck. Elsa knew that Jack wouldn't have a chance if he fought Gaston sober, but to her relief, Gaston quickly passed out onto the floor.

"Jack!" Elsa cried as she ran into his arms. She was crying.

"I'm really glad I decided the best time to try and talk to you would be late at night, or else I wouldn't have been here," Jack said, holding her. "Let's go inside. He'll wake up in a few minutes, and he'll just assume he took you home and passed out."


	8. Chapter 8: Anna Meets Jack

**Hey guys, sorry for skipping a day - I was moving back into the dorms and getting everything together for school. I start classes again today! I'll do my best to stay ahead and keep posting every day at least until this particular story is finished. **

**Also, I wanted to address a review that mentioned my lack of detail. I'm used to writing scripts, and I did notice that my fiction writing was quite bare - so thank you for pointing it out! Please keep reviewing, guys! I love hearing what you think! **

"Where is Anna?" Jack asked. They were sitting on the couch in front of the television. Elsa had turned it on to help calm herself down.

"Anna's on a date with one of the younger football players; Gaston set them up," she replied. She still couldn't believe what had happened, and, even more so, she couldn't believe Jack's perfect timing. Elsa still wasn't sure how she felt about Jack. All she knew was that she liked having him around.

"Is it really a good idea to trust Gaston's choice in guys?" Jack asked skeptically. "It's getting really late. Maybe you should call her?"

"He couldn't have been drunk when he set them up; I trust his sober judgment," Elsa replied. She knew that that was a bad thing to say immediately.

"Really?" Jack said in a sarcastic, dry tone. "You trust the guy who hits you -"

"Jack," Elsa tried.

"and drove you home while he was _drunk_ -"

"Please, Jack stop,"

"and almost _raped_ you right afterward?! _Really_ Elsa?" Jack was yelling.

"Jack, please stop yelling. You don't know the situation, and you don't know him." Elsa attempted.

"Don't you _dare _defend him right now, Elsa! You're smarter than that - I _know _it!" Jack shouted. He couldn't believe what he was hearing her say, but he also couldn't believe how familiar the situation was. The fact that he had gone through this and succeeded before wasn't calming enough to make up for the disturbing reality that there must be so many other girls out there going through the exact same thing.

"Gaston loves Anna - like a little sister. She was the reason he had his parents take us in. Our aunt used to give us all these ridiculous rules and these terrible punishments when we didn't follow them, and Anna wouldn't have it! She's a lot stronger than I am, and she would rather be locked in an attic for hours because she tried to defend herself than give up her dignity," Elsa defended. "He's a good person; he was there for us," she whispered to herself.

"Elsa," Jack reasoned, "you don't know how much you sound like my mother. My step dad was good in the beginning too. He took us in, helped me with my homework, took me to baseball games and her to expensive dinners, and when she had kids with him she felt like there was no way she'd ever leave him. But no matter what, a person should never feel forced to stay with someone who hurts them." Jack was being sincere, and Elsa knew that he was right.

"What can we do though?" Elsa began with tears filling her eyes. "We can't afford to live on our own, and I can't take Anna back there."

"What if," Jack began. He was hesitating because, although he desperately wanted to help this girl, he still hardly knew her, and he didn't know how his mother would react to his request to take in two girls she'd never even met before.

"What?" Elsa urged.

Before Jack could continue, Anna walked through the door with a smile on her face.

"Oh Elsa, you'll _never_ believe... Who is this?" she cut herself off, turning to Jack.

"Oh, Anna, this is Jack. He's from the theatre," Elsa answered.

"Is this the same guy who took you home and made Gaston throw a fit?" Anna accused. "Why are you hanging out with this guy at midnight? Where is Gaston?"

"A better question would be: why are you just getting home at midnight?" Elsa changed the subject, annoyed that everyone kept insisting that her acquaintanceship with Jack was harming her relationship.

"Because Kristoff _specifically_ said that Gaston wanted me home _no earlier _than midnight because he wanted you guys to have the place to yourselves! Where is he? Did you two get into another fight? Is it because of _this_ guy?" Anna shouted.

"Anna, calm down, and -"

"They did get into a fight," Jack interrupted. "Gaston is a bad guy, and you two should try not to have anything to do with him anymore."

"_Excuse_ me?" Anna shrieked, appalled. "How _dare_ you _talk_ about Elsa's boyfriend like that, you scumbag!"

"Anna, stop it!" Elsa stood up.

"Gaston has done things for us that you wouldn't ever be able to compete with! Don't think that you can just come in here, make assumptions, and give Elsa advice about how to live her life. She doesn't even _know_ you! She's just being polite because she doesn't like conflict,_ okay?_" she yelled, with her face turning red with rage.

"Anna, go to bed!" Elsa commanded, unsure of how else to stop her sister.

"Fine," she huffed. "You two disgust me anyway. I can't believe you would ruin _everything_ just like that," she cried, running off.

Anna's fear and resentment broke Elsa's heart, and all she could feel was guilt. "I think it's best that you go," Elsa said, turning to Jack.

"Why?" Jack stood, looking her in the eye, "So you can avoid me again and avoid conflict? So you can keep everyone happy but yourself? You think I'm gonna let you go through this abuse just so that you can avoid fighting with your sister?"

"You don't understand! She _needs_ me to do this!" Elsa exploded. "Besides, it's not like you have a choice in the matter anyway," she said coldly. "Now go."

"I don't have a choice? You think I can't do anything about this? What if I tell the counselors or go to the police?"

"Jack," Elsa said, her voice cracking.

Jack took Elsa's hand into his and said with a soft voice, "I know what you're going through, and you can't tell me not to help you. I'll let you go to sleep if you promise me you won't try to avoid me."

"Okay," Elsa agreed. "I won't try to avoid you anymore."

Jack wasn't sure if Elsa was lying or not, but he couldn't help but trust her. He couldn't gather enough sense to figure out of his feelings for her were created from attraction or a sense of wanting to protect her, but he knew they were strong. And he couldn't imagine leaving her alone.


	9. Chapter 9: Driving

**Oh my goooooosh you guys :c I'm so sorry for taking so long to update. It's not even that my classes are taking up time; I've mostly been spending all of my free time (which is a lot) hanging out with people and catching up with old friends :P I apologize. I hope you guys like this chapter! I've been waiting for one like this for a while :)**

During Saturday's rehearsal, Jack couldn't get Elsa off his mind. He worried about her promise; he worried about what Anna would say to her; he worried about whether or not Gaston would try to go and see her; and he worried about how she felt about him. He realized that their relationship had been built entirely on situational obligations: being cast in the play together and being the only one who knew her secret, but he wanted to understand her more.

Knocking on her door, he really didn't know what to say when she would open it. _I don't want Gaston to bother you this weekend, so I think you should stay out with me_, he thought. _You promised you wouldn't avoid me, so this is me confirming that. _Everything he thought of sounded dumb, and he couldn't think of how he could explain his want to see her.

Just as he was about to walk away, defeated, Elsa opened the door.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. "I heard your truck pull up; I'm glad it's you and not -"

"I want to hang out with you," Jack admitted, immediately regretting his wording.

"What?" Elsa stumbled on the idea.

"We seem to know each other pretty well, but we've never just hung out," he explained without his inhibitions completely intact.

"Yes we have; I went to your party," Elsa corrected.

"That doesn't count. You were still in your shell that day."

"Have you _ever_ seen me outside of my shell?" Elsa said, partly teasing, partly curious herself.

"_Exactly,_" Jack said, feeling calmer. "You and I need to get to know each other. Otherwise, it just makes our entire situation awkward."

"I don't know," Elsa squinted. "Is this really how you wanna spend your Saturday? Getting to know _me?_"

"You've really gotta give yourself more credit, Elsa. You're fascinating," Jack tried to make his remark sound like a joke, but he meant it.

Elsa laughed. "So what are we going to do today then?"

"Why don't we just drive around and see where the roads take us?" Jack offered with a smile.

"Alright," Elsa nodded, "Let me get my purse."

As Elsa and Jack walked to his truck, Jack tried to think of how he could get her to tell him more about herself. Trying to think of something, he noticed that Elsa was speaking.

"I'm sorry; what was that?" he apologized.

Elsa laughed, "I asked you when you started driving."

"I think it was the summer before junior year that I got my license, but I didn't get around to buying a truck and using it until senior year. What about you?" he returned.

"I don't know how to drive," Elsa replied, getting into her side of the truck.

"What?" Jack responded. "You're a senior in high school! You've never driven?" he asked, shocked.

"Nope," Elsa shook her head, smiling at him shyly.

"Alright; I think I know what we're doing today," Jack decided.

Driving to an empty parking lot in a less busy part of town, Jack pulled over and unbuckled his seat-belt.

"What are you doing?" Elsa laughed.

"You're learning how to drive," he responded, getting out of the truck.

"Jack! You can't be serious!" Elsa shouted, unable to stop laughing at his impulsive behavior.

"You have obviously not hung out with me enough," Jack said, opening her door from the outside. "I'm _always_ serious," he grinned, "Now scoot."

"Jack! I can't!" Elsa tried. "I'll wreck your truck!"

"That would be less of a tragedy than you graduating without ever having your first time behind the wheel," he responded coolly. "So I'll take that chance."

Jack reached over Elsa and unbuckled her seat-belt. "Now, I'm not going to force you to do this if you're really that scared but know that this is an offer that won't come along every day," Jack reasoned. "And it isn't that scary; trust me."

"Okay," Elsa surrendered, moving to the driver's side of the truck.

"Attagirl," Jack praised, climbing into her old seat. "Now check the mirrors and the position of the seat. Make sure your feet can reach both pedals, and you can see the back of the truck through all three mirrors."

"I can't believe this is happening," Elsa muttered as she followed Jack's instructions.

"Alright, now put your foot on the brake," Jack eased.

"Which one is the brake?" Elsa shouted quickly. "Jack, I'm scared," she admitted.

"You don't have to worry about anything," Jack assured. "I'll be right here with you the whole time. The brake is the one on the left. You're gonna hold that one down with your right foot, and I'm gonna put the truck in drive, okay?"

"Okay," Elsa nodded.

"Alright, now _slowly_ ease off the pedal," Jack soothed.

As Elsa did so, the truck began to slowly move forward. "We're moving!" Elsa screamed in excitement.

"Alright, good, now just use the wheel to steer us around here to get used to everything," Jack smiled, "Don't put your foot on either pedal."

"Jack! I'm _driving_!" Elsa shrieked in thrill.

"I know you are," Jack laughed. "I'm glad you stopped being a chicken or else I wouldn't have ever seen this side of you."

"What side of me?" Elsa shot him a look.

"Eyes on the road!" Jack pretended to scold. "The part of you that isn't so afraid to come out of her shell. This is fun," Jack smiled.

"This _is_ fun," Elsa agreed.

"Alright, now when you get the hang of that, I'm gonna teach you how to use the accelerator," Jack let her know. "You're doing great."

**Alright, I'm gonna stop this chapter here because it's about my usual length, and I have to run to my last class for the day! I will try to make my intervals between posts much shorter than this last one! Bye guys! :) **


	10. Chapter 10: Jack's Family

Jack and Elsa had been driving for two hours and completely lost track of time.

"Alright, now this time, try not to let the truck jerk after you stop. You should _slowly_ come to a _smooth_ -"

"Oops," Elsa giggled as their inertia forced them both forward for the hundredth time.

"It's alright," Jack smiled, "Just _relax_ and try again. _Good_; now start slowing down," Jack was saying as she drove. "Now pretend that tree is a stop sign and just trust your instincts about when to put pressure on the brake."

"Alright, I got this," Elsa proclaimed with determination.

"You're doing really well for your first day," Jack praised.

Just as he finished with his compliment, Jack felt the truck begin to stop as they neared the tree. Holding his breath, waiting to see if Elsa had done it again, he felt the car come to a complete, smooth stop without the tiniest jerk.

"I did it!" Elsa exclaimed. "Watch out, Jack, soon _I'll_ be the one driving us around," she laughed, hugging him, letting her foot off the brake.

"Elsa! Brake!" Jack shouted, putting the car in park after she quickly moved from him and slammed her foot on the brakes.

"Whoops," Elsa laughed cautiously, looking up at Jack with a smile brighter than he'd ever seen her wear before.

Jack put his hand on her shoulder and noticed he was grinning just as brightly back at her. _She is so beautiful,_ was all he could think as he stared at her wishing more days could be spent like this.

As he leaned forward, determined to kiss her, he jumped backwards, hearing his phone ring.

"Hello?" he quickly asked into the phone, answering it. He could have sworn he saw her leaning in, ready to kiss him back before they were interrupted.

"Jack? Honey? When are you coming home?" It was his mother.

"Oh… hey mom," Jack responded. "I, uh, I don't know, I'm kind of with someone right now."

"Well can you and your friend come home for a little bit and watch Jamie and Sophie? I need to run a few errands and buy groceries for dinner."

"Uh, yeah, sure, I'll come home soon."

"Thank you, dear," she said before hanging up.

"I… uh…. do you want to meet my brother and sister?" Jack asked.

"What?" Elsa asked, not understanding what he had just said.

"My mom needs a babysitter, and she… oh wait, you probably have to watch over Anna," Jack answered himself.

"You want me to babysit your little brother and sister?" Elsa asked, confused.

"No," Jack laughed, "I have to go home and watch them, and I… I was wondering if you wanted to come too, you know, so that this doesn't have to be cut off just like that." Jack said with his hand in his hair. He was nervous.

"Oh," Elsa said, realizing what was happening. "Um, Anna should be fine. She's going with her friends to the football game and - _oh my god_," Elsa muttered.

"What?" Jack asked.

"_The football game_! There's a game tonight, and I completely forgot!" Elsa frantically picked up her purse and unbuckled her seatbelt.

"Elsa," Jack put his hand on hers, "Don't let him control you."

Elsa looked at Jack with a guilt in her eyes that he hated seeing.

"I… -"

"Just come with me. I'm not taking you to that game so you can be there by yourself, and I can't be there to stay with you," Jack reasoned. "You've put yourself through enough. Please, just keep having fun like you've been doing."

"You _are_ good at helping me let go and have fun," Elsa said, trying to smile at him.

Hearing Elsa say that made Jack feel a sense of hope that he needed to feel. He remembered Jamie and Sophie and when they learned about the divorce; he had done his best to use fun to help them through it, and it became his go-to method for everyone he tried to help. He didn't know why he didn't think to use it for Elsa from the beginning.

"Alright," Jack smiled, "Let's go home."

* * *

><p>"Jack? Is that you?" Jack's mother called as he and Elsa walked in.<p>

"Yeah, it's me, mom."

"Where have you been? I called you forty-five minutes ago! This _town_ doesn't take forty-five minutes to drive through_ twice!_ If dinner is late tonight, it's on _you_ bud- oh! Who's this?" she asked, her tone changing as the two of them walked into the kitchen.

"Mom, this is Elsa," Jack introduced.

"Hi! It's nice to meet you," Jack's mother smiled, hugging her. "Now, I'd love to get to know you better, but I _really_ need to run. I'd love if you stayed for dinner though! Jack is so secretive, I need to find out all about -"

"Aren't you in a hurry, mom?" Jack asked, cutting her off.

"_Oh, right_," she grinned. "If I come home, and she isn't here, I'll be very disappointed," she called as she hurried out the door.

"Sorry about her," Jack laughed.

"She's so sweet," Elsa smiled. "Now I know where you get it… and your pushiness," she laughed.

"I am not_ that_ pushy!" Jack protested.

"Oh yeah he is," Jamie cut in, walking over with a stuffed animal in his hands.

"You must be Jamie!" Elsa beamed. " And who's this?"

"That's Jamie's bunny. He won't part from it while we're at home," Jack explained.

* * *

><p>When Jack's mother returned home, she found Jack and Sophie asleep on the couch and heard Jamie telling one of his stories about how he met Santa Clause. Opening the door to Jamie's bedroom, she found Elsa and Jamie making shadow puppets by his night-light, laughing and talking.<p>

"Mom!" Jamie exclaimed after he noticed her standing in the doorway.

"Hi sweety," his mother smiled," I'm going to get started on dinner, don't let me bother you two."

"Oh let me help you," Elsa offered, standing up.

"Oh _darling_," his mother started, thinking she knew she had to decline but then realizing that she could get to know Elsa without Jack interrupting their every conversation if they cooked together, she changed her mind, saying, "Actually, help would be_ lovely_. It's already past the kids' usual dinner time."

As Jack's mother and Elsa walked to the kitchen, Elsa nervously fiddled with her hair. She had only ever met Gaston's mother, and she never had to be alone with her. But Elsa loved the idea of getting to know Jack's mother.

As they prepared dinner together, Jack's mother asked Elsa how school was going and made small conversations to try and break the ice. Within minutes, she knew more about Elsa than Jack did during his first week with her.

"_No_," Elsa stared in disbelief. "Jack used to _what?"_

"It's_ true!_" his mother laughed, "Once, I left him out in the front yard to wait while I went inside to grab my purse, and when I came out Jack was squatting over the sidewalk, squishing these little red ants with his finger, and when I asked him, 'Jacky, what are you doing?' he explained -"

"There were only three black ants and over twenty red ones," Jack cut her off, entering the kitchen. "It wasn't fair, even if they are bigger," he explained.

"Morning sleepyhead," Elsa smiled.

"Hey, you didn't have rehearsal for six hours this morning," Jack defended.

"Alright, dinner is ready. I'll go get your brother and sister. Can you two set the table?" Jack's mother asked, leaving.

"Sure," the two of them said simultaneously.

As Jack and Elsa set the table, they both nervously walked around each other and did their best not to reach for the same things, trying to avoid a moment where their hands would touch. They were both nervous, and they were both finally certain of their feelings for each other and equally as uncertain about the other's feelings for them.


	11. Chapter 11: Elsa's freedom

**Hey everyone :(**

**I'm sorry it's been so long. I started writing over Winter Break, and now that I'm back in school, I just sort of jumped into my old routine - which didn't involve writing. I'm working on changing that though. Thank you for being patient! I hope that the longest interval between chapters is over and gone forever.**

"I really like that girl," Jack's mother said as he walked back into the house after driving Elsa home.

"I really like her too," Jack replied, sitting next to her at the table, taking a cup of coffee she set out for him.

"Oh that is such a relief," his mother sighed before taking a sip from her mug. "Except for her, you have the _worst_ taste in girls."

"Hey, I thought you liked Aurora," Jack laughed.

"I did like her! But not for you. Aurora isn't sensitive like you and Elsa, and she really didn't have much depth to her. Everything that went through her head was visible; Elsa's complex. Almost as complex as you are," she said, nudging her son.

"Oh _believe me_, she's a lot more complex than I am," Jack muttered.

"Well I think that you are just the man to figure her out," she smiled, standing up to place her mug in the sink.

* * *

><p>"Where have you <em>been<em>?" Anna ran to her sister, wrapping her arms around her before she could come in through the door.

"Anna, I need to talk to you," Elsa said, not answering her question. As she walked into the apartment she noticed Kristoff sitting at the table and then saw Gaston walking out of the restroom.

"Where'd you go, babe?" Gaston asked without any visible anger. "We missed you at the game and the dinner afterward. It was kinda awkward, me being Anna and Kristoff's third wheel with you not there."

"Oh," Elsa stuttered, "Why didn't Rapunzel and Flynn go?"

"I thought it'd be nice to take your sister and her new boyfriend out. It would have been fun to have you there; we had a really good time."

Elsa stood frozen, unable to move.

"So where were you?" Gaston asked. Though he didn't utter his question in a threatening or accusing tone, Elsa was afraid, and she didn't know what to do.

"I… I didn't have a ride to the game. So I just stayed home and did some homework, and then went out for a walk." Elsa couldn't tell Gaston that she was with Jack.

"Ahhh why didn't you call me? Anyone could have come back to pick you up," Gaston said.

"I… it's fine. I wanted to catch up with my work anyway; I had a good time by myself," Elsa faked a smile. "So how was dinner? Where did you guys go?" Elsa asked, trying to get the subject off of herself.

"We went to that new restaurant! Oh it was so darling, Elsa!" Anna beamed.

"Can we go into your room and talk?" Gaston asked, with no apparent emotion.

"S...sure," Elsa stuttered, afraid he knew somehow about Jack.

Moving to Elsa's bedroom, Gaston shut the door behind him. Elsa almost wished that he would yell at her or hit her so that she could gather the nerve to break up with him partly because his lack of anger was unnerving and partly because she knew that after spending a day with Jack she had enough courage to finally do it this time.

"Take a seat," Gaston motioned. Pointing to the bed.

Elsa did as he commanded and did her best to hold tight to the courage Jack had given her. She knew in her bones she wouldn't let him hit her ever again.

Gaston paced around the room and sighed occasionally, running his hand through his hair.

"Is something wrong?" Elsa asked, trying not to sound suspicious, but also unbearably curious about what he was thinking.

"I vaguely remember yesterday night." Gaston muttered. His utterance didn't sound like an opening so much as it did an isolated statement. Elsa wasn't sure if he was going to continue.

Sitting next to her on the bed, Gaston continued, "I remember hurting you, and I remember not being able to control myself."

Terrified that he would bring Jack up, Elsa shivered remembering that night and sat in silence, unsure of what to do or say.

"What happened to us?" Gaston asked, his eyes pleading for her warmth and affection as the rest of his face tensed.

"What do you mean?" Elsa asked.

"You know exactly what I mean," Gaston snapped. Softly, he continued, "You and I used to be so… I felt like I had the world in my hands. School was going great, I became the captain of the team, and then I met the most amazing girl I could imagine."

Gaston and Elsa met at a party a mutual friend threw. Elsa and Anna used to go to a school on the other side of town, and after Gaston got close to them and learned about their aunt, he asked his parents to allow them to stay in their apartment complex without charge so that they could be free. Elsa never really opened up to Gaston; she never opened up to anyone. But he thought he was in love with her, and she thought she loved him back; she had mistaken feeling grateful for feeling love.

Gaston continued, "I felt like a hero - saving you from her. I loved you; I loved Anna," he cupped his face in his hands and sighed through his fingers, "But you never loved me."

"Gaston," Elsa felt her mouth say before her mind knew where she was going.

"Don't try to make me feel better, Els. You know it's true. You're a girl who likes to think and to understand things, and we both know that I could never keep up with you… but you never gave me a chance to." Looking up, Gaston finished, "You never opened up to me."

"Where is all of this coming from?" Elsa asked, looking for a foundation to build off of.

"I _thought_ that maybe it was because we weren't being intimate with each other, and we were growing distant… and so I tried to… I wanted to do stuff with you last night… and I was drunk…" Gaston began to choke on his words. Elsa saw in his face that he knew that he had almost raped her. "If that guy wasn't there," Gaston spat, "I would have done it. I know it! Look at yourself! You wouldn't have stood a chance," Gaston's disgust with himself was something Elsa had never seen on another person before.

"You remember Jack being there?" Elsa said with uncertainty.

"It was Jack?" a realization crept across Gaston's face and scared away all of his guilt, self-reproach, and humanity. "It was that theatre kid who came up from behind me and choked me out?"

"He saved me from you - you just said it yourself," Elsa reminded him, her courage being overrun by her fear.

"I thought it was some random guy walking down the street," Gaston muttered, becoming hysterical. "But it was your new little boyfriend… what the fuck was he doing here at midnight? Huh? You expect me to believe you weren't fooling around with him?" Gaston yelled.

"He wanted to talk -" Elsa managed before Gaston continued.

"I may not be as smart as you, but I still deserve some respect!" Gaston roared, slapping Elsa across the face.

Gripping her cheek with her hand, Elsa backed up against the wall and stared on this beast that had taken over someone she once trusted.

"I wasn't fooling around with him," Elsa said, her voice straight with confidence and conviction. "I wouldn't do that to you."

Throwing a framed picture of them across the room, Gaston yelled, _"I don't believe you!_"

"Then don't believe me!" Elsa dared, standing on her own, not needing the wall for support anymore; removing her hand from her face. "I am not going to let you rule over my life anymore. Kick Anna and me out - I'll find a job and take care of us."

"You don't mean that," Gaston said with a hint of a dark chuckle.

"I mean it when I say that you will never hit me again," Elsa's strong demeanor and unshakable posture both surprised and offended Gaston. "And if you do, I'll go to the police. I'll show your friends, your team, your parents, and everyone else all of the bruises you've given me, and I'll let everyone know what a monster you are."

"Oh yeah," Gaston threatened, moving close to Elsa to try and threaten her with his strength, "What can you do about anything I do right now?"

Unmoved, Elsa assured him, "I will survive anything you do to me right now, and I will make you pay for it. You can hit me; you can force yourself on me; you could even kill me - and you would pay the consequences you deserve. Jack would know it was you, and Jack wouldn't let you get away with it. It's over, Gaston. You can't bully your way through to the relationship you want anymore. I'm free."

Disturbed, Gaston moved away from Elsa and sat on the bed. "I was never like this before," he defended himself. "I was always a good boyfriend to the other girls. You just… _you did something_, I don't know what it was, but I never felt good enough for you, Elsa. I never felt in control. I needed -"

"You needed to be with another type of girl," Elsa finished. "I was never the one for you."

"You are such a snob," Gaston growled. "You and your smart, coy ass." He was trying to redeem something, but he didn't understand what. "You are just too good for me, huh Elsa? You're too good for the star football player because you're too goddamn smart for him, isn't that right?"

"I think you should leave," Elsa said, trying to end everything while she was still ahead.

_"It's my fucking apartment!_" Gaston snapped. "Why didn't you ever give me a chance, huh Elsa? You could have talked to me about that book you were reading - I've read books before. You could ask me what I think freedom truly means - I could debate with you. Rapunzel's pretty damn smart too, and she still opens up to Flynn and has conversations like that with_ him._ Why don't you ever _try_ with me? Huh? Do you think I'm that much dumber than Flynn, or do you think you're _that_ much smarter than her? Huh? Answer me you fucking snob."

"You're comparing the two of us to an entirely different couple with an entirely different dynamic," Elsa answered. "I don't care for those conversations as much as Rapunzel does."

"Then what did you want?!" Gaston demanded. "What is it that I could have done that could keep you here? Why did I have to lose you to that guy?" Gaston was losing it.

"I wanted someone I could feel safe with, who I could look up to. You've always been a bully, even before you hit me. You tried to control me with your threats rather than trust that I respected you - and maybe you are smart for catching on to that. You have no self-respect. You try and gain all of your power through popularity and bullying, and that doesn't work with me. Become someone you can get excited to look in the mirror and see, not someone girls will scream down the hallway for. Impress yourself before you try to go and impress everyone else."

Gaston looked down, intimidated by her analysis. "You always were too good for me, weren't you?"

Elsa didn't answer him.

"I wish you would have told me all of that, so I could have fixed it before."

"It isn't something that could have been fixed because you'd be doing it for me, which isn't the point. And you didn't want to hear it."

Gaston took a long look at Elsa and walked out of the room before saying anything more. He was afraid he didn't know what to say.


	12. Chapter 12: Elsa's Return

"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear, oh _dear,_" Mrs. Andalasia whisper-chanted quickly after Elsa told her that she was back. "Ooh I knew I shouldn't have let you go," she laughed. "As you've probably presumed, Aurora has been put in as Princess Buttercup, and it simply wouldn't be fair if I took that role from her to make room for you."

"It's okay if I'm not Buttercup," Elsa offered, "I can be a background character or a makeup artist, anything you need really. I just want to be back here."

Mrs. Andalasia smiled at Elsa and nodded, "You can be my assistant! Now that Jack is getting busier and busier with his countless positions here, I'll have you to assist me with anything that comes our way! And I'll bet you're better than Jack at picking out fonts and helping girls out of caught zippers," she chuckled.

"That sounds absolutely perfect," Elsa beamed.

Just then, Jack entered carrying a large, white piece of poster paper and a can of paintbrushes. "I'm sorry I'm late, Ms. A. I was arguing with the student council about… Elsa" he breathed as he noticed Mrs. Andalasia's company.

"Hi Jack," Elsa smiled shyly.

"Jack, Elsa has decided that she wants back in business! She is now my new lovely assistant and can help you with all of these little chores you seem so fond of."

"That's great," Jack managed to say while catching the breath that the sight of Elsa took away.

After remaining in her frozen, smiling position at the sight of Jack, Elsa snapped out of her hypnotic state and offered to help him with the poster paper.

"Are you any good with a paintbrush?" Jack winked at her.

"I'm alright," Elsa giggled.

"Perfect!" Mrs. Andalasia exclaimed. "Elsa, your first task as my new assistant is to create a poster for the show! Be as creative as you like."

At that moment, Peter knocked on Mrs. Andalasia's office door and told her that everyone was ready to rehearse.

"Oh my!" she responded, "Jack, you and Elsa brainstorm ideas for the poster, I'll get started on one of the scenes you aren't in."

As she and Peter left the room, Elsa and Jack awkwardly moved the poster to the table, avoiding eye contact as much as possible.

"So what made you come back?" Jack asked, breaking the silence.

"Um… I broke up with Gaston," Elsa uttered.

Jack immediately sat down and pulled her into the seat next to him, "Well go on," he urged.

"Well, there isn't much more to it… I just… stood up to him… and,"

"Elsa, I want to hear about this," Jack encouraged, "What made you finally do it? How did he react? How are you feeling?"

"I… uh… well," Elsa started. Jack was making her more nervous than she had ever felt before. "I can't really remember how it started. All I know is that I brought you up, and he hit me. And I told him that he was never going to hit me again-"

"Wait," Jack interrupted, "You brought _me _up, and _that _made him hit you?" His face was solemn and confused.

"Well it wasn't like… I don't know… he brought up that night. The one where you saved me. I mentioned your name, and he didn't know it was you that saved me. He thought it was a random person."

"And he assumed that we were fooling around because I was at your place so late at night," Jack finished quietly.

"Yeah," Elsa confirmed, remembering Gaston's accusations.

"I am so sorry," Jack breathed, taking Elsa's hands into his. "You shouldn't have been punished for me deciding to come by and snoop around in your business."

"Jack, no, you _saved _me. Gaston was going to do something really bad that night, and if you weren't there, he would have gone through with it. Jack, don't be sorry for that. I'm still so grateful for it," Elsa assured him, moving her chair closer to his and holding his hands more firmly.

"You mean it?" Jack smirked hollowly.

"Oh Jack, of course I do," Elsa laughed, leaning her head onto his shoulder.

Jack, feeling more and more like he could understand Elsa, took one of his hands from their grasp on each other and moved his arm around her. "I'm so proud of you," he whispered into her ear as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

Just then, Aurora opened the door to the office and said, "Elsa, we need you to be on book." Finishing her sentence, Aurora noticed Jack and Elsa's closeness to each other and saw them holding hands.

Embarrassed and quickly getting up, Elsa grabbed a script from Mrs. Andalasia's desk, nodded, and headed towards the stage.

"What were you two doing in here?" Aurora questioned Jack. He sat still in his chair, too cemented in the moment to pay attention to her.

Not allowing herself to be ignored, Aurora walked towards him and repeated, "Jack, what were you and Elsa doing in the office while the rest of us are out there rehearsing?"

Standing up, Jack answered, "We were brainstorming poster ideas," as he walked past her and onto the stage.


	13. UPDATE

Hi Everybody!

I'm really sorry I didn't keep up with this story and left you all hanging for seven months. Honestly, I thought that I was done. The writer's block had done a number on my will to keep going, and I just decided, "I guess Elsa finally standing up to Gaston works as an ending." But it was all of your reviews and requests for me to keep going that got me back in the spirits.

Thank you guys for refusing to let me give this one up. I promise I'll keep going with this story until it's finished.

Jane Howard


	14. Chapter 13: A Night Out

"Elsa, you're back!" Quasimodo exclaimed, hugging her as she walked onto the stage.

"Hi Quasi!" Elsa returned, hugging him back.

"We missed you so much! Why did you ever leave?" he asked.

"You guys… missed me?" Elsa asked quietly, unable to understand how the group she barely knew could care about her leaving.

"Oh yeah," he assured, "Everyone's family here."

Elsa took in the idea of having a group of friends she could actually feel comfortable around. All her life, it had been only her sister and occasionally Rapunzel.

"Oh Elsa, good! You brought the script," Mrs. Andalasia observed as she waved her over to the lip of the stage.

As rehearsal was finishing up, Elsa and Quasimodo offered to sweep the stage while Aladdin and Jack sat around the corner, talking.

"Do you think it's too soon though?" Jack asked, looking for any source of confidence to help calm his crush.

"Nah, man. And from what it sounds like, you two were practically dating before she even broke up with him," Aladdin assured.

"No, don't say that. We definitely were not," Jack said remembering that their inappropriate friendship cost Elsa a partial beating. "We've been friends, and I feel really close to her, but we were _not _'practically dating'," Jack corrected.

"Okay, dude, whatever," Aladdin raised his hands as if a cop told him to freeze. "I'm just saying, if I gave a girl her first driving lesson and helped her with all her problems with a bad boyfriend, I'd think we're practically dating." Aladdin's eyes widened, "Unless you've been _friendzoned!_" he proclaimed.

"What?" Jack stuttered, thinking about the possibility.

"Dude, seriously. Okay, does she hold your hand and kiss you on the cheek and tell you what a great friend you are?" Aladdin questioned quickly.

"We - uh - we've held hands, but not in a cute way, like in a serious way. And - uh - she's never kissed me on the cheek. She might've told me I was a great friend! What do I do, man?" Jack fretted nervously.

"Okay, okay, you've still got a chance. Good looking guys always have a chance out."

"Okay, so what do I do?"

"I'm _thinking_, dude," Aladdin said as he heard Quasimodo's voice coming toward them. "She's coming! Act natural!"

"Dude, I don't know how to - oh _hey_ Elsa. Hey Quasi," Jack managed, turning and seeing them come around the corner.

"What are you guys doing?" Elsa laughed.

"We were - uh" Aladdin started.

"We were waiting for you guys!" Jack finished. "Do you wanna go and get fries and milkshakes or something?"

"That sounds great!" Quasimodo exclaimed.

"Okay," Elsa smiled in agreement.

After hours of talking and laughing, the group of four decided to ask for the check and conclude their meal.

"Alright, until the waiter gets back, let's see how many awkward questions we can get Elsa to answer!" Aladdin proposed.

"What?" Elsa shrieked.

"Come on, you didn't give us a chance to really get to know you before you left! We have to get some security to make sure you stay this time," Aladdin explained.

"Jack, is this a real thing?" Elsa questioned in disbelief, to which Jack simply shrugged and laughed.

"Okay, Quasimodo's going first," Aladdin commanded.

"I don't know what to ask her," Quasimodo laughed. "Does it have to be awkward?"

Aladdin nodded.

"Okay. Have you ever farted in front of people before?"

The group burst out laughing.

"Yes, I have," Elsa laughed, nodding. "It was embarrassing."

"I've never seen a girl do that before," Quasimodo explained.

"Haha, okay, who's next?" Elsa asked playfully.

Aladdin rose his hand, "Alright I got one. You're recently single, right? If you were to replace your old boyfriend with someone at this table, who would it be?"

Jack shot Aladdin a look as Elsa answered, "Ummm, I guess I would date Jack because I know him the best. And oh look! Here comes our waiter with the check. Guess this game's over!"

"Alright, I've got it cause I dragged all of you out here," Aladdin said as he pulled out his wallet. "Wow, none of you are going to interject?"

The others laughed and put money on the table.

"I'm going to run to the restroom," Elsa announced, getting up.

After Elsa was out of earshot, Aladdin immediately proclaimed, "Dude, she's totally into you."

"What?" Jack hesitated.

"Did you hear her?" In his best girl-voice, Aladdin imitated, "'Ummmmmmmmmm, I _guess _Jack because _I know him_.' She made tried her best to make it seem like she'd never thought about it before and then gave a reason so that she wouldn't sound eager!"

"You're ridiculous!" Jack laughed. "She was embarrassed."

"_Nooo_, I'm telling you, man, she's trying to hide it. She's got it bad. If she was embarrassed, she wouldn't have answered that question about _farting_ so easily."

"How do you even know all of this about how girls think? Besides, even if you were an expert on girls, I still wouldn't be too certain. Elsa's different. She's complicated," Jack explained.

"Duuude, you've got it _bad,_" Aladdin teased.

"Are you guys talking about setting Jack and Elsa up?" Quasimodo questioned, falling behind the two older boys.

"Yeah," Aladdin answered, "What do you think, Quasi? She into him?"

"Aladdin!" Jack laughed, embarrassed at the subject at hand.

"I think so," Quasimodo said thoughtfully.

"Wait, really?" Jack eagerly asked, "Did she say anything to you?"

"No, but she stared at you during the entire rehearsal. And she just seems to pay more attention when you're the one talking."

"Huh," Jack sat back. He still wasn't certain about her liking him back, but he definitely knew he liked hearing his friends think that she did.

**Hey everyone, I'm really sorry if you're getting spammed with updates, but this chapter is having major difficulties loading properly, and I keep re-submitting it. Anyway, thank you all so much for reading, and be sure to let me know what you think!**


	15. Chapter 14: Gaston

Coming home, Elsa walked through the door and saw Gaston and Anna talking on the couch.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she demanded.

Gaston nervously chuckled, "Hey it's still my place you know."

"That doesn't mean you get to walk in here without being invited. I'll have rent to pay you soon. Please leave," Elsa said with a dark voice.

"Elsa, listen. Anna let me in. I wanted to talk to you," Gaston pleaded.

Anna started, "Elsa be nice to him. I know you two broke up, but we still owe him a lot-"

"We don't owe him _anything_," Elsa corrected. "Go to your room, and shut the door."

Anna sulked on and obeyed her sister.

"Why are you here?" Elsa demanded again.

"Elsie-"

"Don't call me that!" Elsa shouted. She had never been mean to anyone before, but after standing up to Gaston, she wanted to make sure he never tried to take advantage of her shyness again.

"Okay, okay. Elsa, I just wanted to talk to you. We _do _need to settle this rent thing, don't we?"

"I'll pay you every month. I'm looking for a job right now, in fact," Elsa proclaimed. "And I'm sure you can agree that we should forget about the previous months because of our unique circumstances."

"Hey, come on, why don't you sit down," Gaston said from the couch.

"I'm fine standing," she spat.

"Look, it's great that you're looking for a job, but you should be saving all the money you make for college. Tuition ain't cheap, you know," Gaston reasoned.

Elsa stared at him, confused about his kindness.

He continued, "I want us to be friends. I don't expect you to agree, but I still care about you, and I still care about Anna. I don't want you to have to worry about money or where to go. I still stand by what I said when we first started this whole thing: it isn't fair, what happened to you guys. And I want to do whatever I can to help you."

Elsa didn't know what to say. She sat down, her head a mess of emotions and thoughts.

"Baby," Gaston comforted, placing his hand on her back.

"Don't," Elsa shrugged his hand off of her. Facing him, she said with a shaky voice, "I can't trust you, Gaston. You _hurt _me so badly. You never trusted me; you always tried to control my decisions. If I let you help me, you'll still have power over me, and I _can't_ give that to you, not again."

"I know," Gaston sighed. "I _promise_, I will _never _hurt you again."

"_I don't believe you!" _Elsa cried.

"You don't have to. It's okay; we don't have to be friends. You never have to talk to me or see me again. But what you said that night meant a lot to me. I won't bully you anymore; I know you're free. All I want is to let you stop worrying. You're gonna make yourself sick with how much you worry," Gaston explained. He was being honest. He didn't know if he'd completely changed yet, but he knew that he wanted to help her and that he still cared about her.

"You wanna know why I never opened up to you, never told you anything?" Elsa mocked with a voice full of anger and a face half-covered in tears. "You didn't want me to."

"Elsa, let's not get back into-"

"You didn't care about who I was or what I thought about. You had this perfect little mold of who I was supposed to be, and you just assumed that's who I was," Elsa couldn't stop herself. "You wanted a perfect little sidekick-like girlfriend who'd love the attention of being around you and your football friends. You wanted me to only care about things you cared about, and you wanted me to fit into your life the way _you _wanted!"

"I know," Gaston agreed. "You're right. I didn't-"

"Yeah, you bet your sorry, pathetic ass you know," Elsa mocked. She was becoming something she couldn't recognize. All her life, she'd hidden her feelings and allowed other people to win every time there was a disagreement. "Jack never tried to oppress me. He wanted more than anything to get to know who I am, and I couldn't even understand his kindness because nobody ever cared before."

"So you _were _into him!" Gaston shouted, breaking his composure. "Don't act like you're so perfect and innocent when I was the only one who was truly faithful in our relationship."

Gaston and Elsa were both standing at this point. Both were angry, and both were badly hurt by the other.

"He was nice to me. That's a fact. But I don't think it's fair for you to accuse me of not being faithful. I thought I loved you," Elsa said slowly.

"Thought?" Gaston's voice gave away signs that his heart was breaking. "Maybe I should go," he said under his breath as he walked toward the door.

"No. Gaston, wait," Elsa said going after him. After he stopped as she commanded, she came close and wrapped her arms around him. "You're still important to me too. Thank you for coming over and offering to help."

Gaston hugged Elsa in return and held her close, wishing he could start over with this girl.

"Please let me help you," he said in an almost whisper. "I just want to make things right with us."

Elsa unlocked herself from their embrace and looked up at him. She knew that he was serious, and, for the first time, she saw warm, selfless love in his eyes.

"I didn't mean to hurt you, Gaston. I mean, I did at the time, but I wish I didn't."

Gaston laughed and hugged her again. "I know. You're usually so sweet; you were really scaring me back there." He paused. "Just assure me of one thing though, please. You don't have feelings for him, do you?"

Willing to do anything to keep from hurting him again, Elsa nodded. She knew that she was lying, but she wanted to repay the kindness he had shown her, not only today, but throughout the beginning of her relationship with him as well.

"Thank you," Gaston said sincerely. "Now really, don't worry about the rent. We can break up; I'll get over you, I promise. But stay here, and don't act like anything changed, okay?"

Gaston reminded Elsa why she started to like him in the beginning. "Okay," she agreed.


	16. Chapter 15

Elsa spent the entire next day applying for jobs with no luck. She thought about Gaston's offer. Getting a job to pay the rent would be difficult, _especially_ if she was going to pay tuition for college within a year. _Gaston said we didn't have to be friends_ she thought. _I can just accept his apology, and I wouldn't have to worry about a thing._ Elsa still wanted to have a job so that she could be completely independent, but maybe letting Gaston help her wasn't such a bad idea.

"Hey Elsa," Jack called from a seat in the fast-food place she just found out wasn't hiring. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, hi Jack," Elsa answered. "I've just been looking for some work, hoping for some extra money. How about you, what are you doing?" She took a seat with him at the table.

"Oh you know, just spending some time with Jamie and Sophie. They're in the playplace," he smiled.

"Oh cool," Elsa responded. Jack noticed the softness in her voice. It was a softness she only added when she was sad and didn't want to talk.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" Elsa faked a smile. "Nothing's wrong."

"Elsa, I know when something's wrong, even with you and your walls." Jack said. He had hoped that by now she would open up to him without so much prying.

"I talked to Gaston yesterday," Elsa began.

Jack's face froze. He thought that she was done with him. _Then again, it did seem like a pretty quick split, _he thought. He prepared to hear her speech about how he'd _changed_ and how much better he'd be this time, and he hoped that she trusted him enough by now to listen to him.

"Elsa!" Jamie and Sophie shrieked as they came running toward the table.

"Hey guys!" Elsa said back excitedly as the kids jumped onto the empty chairs near the girl and greeted her with big hugs.

"Do you wanna come and play with us? We're having so much fun!" Jamie asked.

"Hey, why don't you guys go on," Jack started. "I already told you, me and Elsa are too old to play in the playplace."

"Fine, we have to see Elsa after though."

"Deal," she winked.

"Why did you see Gaston?" Jack demanded, worried.

"Anna invited him over, and… well… we _did_ have to talk about whether or not we could stay and if we'd have to start paying rent-"

"So _that's _why you're looking for a job," Jack paused. "You know, I have some money saved up. When is your first month due? I can help you out for a while as you get started." He was relieved to hear that she didn't take him back and that she was looking for a job to become independent.

"Jack," Elsa stopped him shyly, "That won't be necessary. I don't know if I really have to pay or not…"

Jack was confused. "What? Then why are you looking for a job? Wait, start over, I'm sorry for interrupting. What kind of agreement did you two come to?"

"Well - I - we decided that I could keep living there without paying." Elsa answered, hoping she wouldn't have to give details, but, knowing Jack, knowing she would.

"That sounds quite generous of him. So why are you looking for work."

"Oh, you know, high school won't last forever. Once I go to college, I'll have to pay tuition. And what if he changes his mind? You know. I'm just being responsible," Elsa explained.

"Why would he change his mind?" Jack asked, sure there was more to the situation than she was telling.

"What?" Elsa didn't know how to answer him without telling him the entire story. "I'm…I'm just being cautious is all."

"Elsa, I know you're keeping something from me. What does he have over you?" he pried.

"_Nothing_," Elsa knew that if he kept asking, she'd crack.

"Elsa," he moved to the seat next to her and put his arm around her, "You don't have to keep everything to yourself anymore. I'm here for you."

Elsa felt so comforted in his arms. She just wanted to say: _I never told you, but I've been falling in love. And Gaston would destroy me if he found out._

"He still cares about Anna and me," she mustered. "And he wants to make sure that we're okay. But what if he stops caring about us? What if -" tears filled Elsa's eyes. "I should go," she stood.

"Elsa, wait," Jack grabbed her wrist and slid his hand down it until he was holding hers. "Let me help you," he begged.

"You're _always _helping me," Elsa collapsed back into her seat. "All I am is a project! Our friendship is just a pathetic orphan girl with an abusive boyfriend talking to a good guy about her problems."

Her statements stung, but Jack managed, "That isn't true. What about when we went driving together? And when you met my family, or even when we went to the video store the first night you came to the cast-warming party? And yesterday, going out with Aladdin and Quasi. You can't say you felt like a victim then."

Elsa stared at the floor. He couldn't even tell if she heard what he was saying, but he continued, "Elsa, I care about our friendship so much. Not just the parts where I help you with Gaston but when we have fun together, too."

Elsa looked up at him. "I like that too," her voice cracked with pain.

"In fact," Jack started again. "Why don't we all go and see a movie or something? You can invite Anna if she'd be up for it."

There he went again. Elsa remembered the first time Jack invited Anna to the cast party and how it contrasted with Gaston's complaining about Elsa always having to watch her.

"Okay," Elsa agreed. "I'll call her and ask right now."


End file.
